Storage and distribution of liquors.



No. 893,358. PATENTED JULY 14, 1908.

M. ONEILL.

STORAGE AND DISTRIBUTION OF LIQUORS.

' APPLICATION FILED AUG. 12, 1907.

wi/lmooaco E] wvc 14 150 a V life of the liquor.

MARCO ONEILL, OF NEW LONDON, CONNECTICUT.

STORAGE AND DISTRIBUTION OF LIQUOBS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented July 14, 1908.

Application filed August 12, 1907. Serial No. 388,080.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, MARGO ONEILL, a citizen of the United States, residing at New London, county of New London, Connecticut, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in the Storage and Distribution of Liquors, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

My invention relates to the storage and distribution of liquids, particularly beer, ale, porter, and the like.

By my system great economies are attained. The gas that is allowed to escape at the time of venting one or more casks is utilized to force the liquor from another cask as the demand is made thereon. In those liquors which are stored in bulk or in casks and which are under pressure either generated from within or forced in, it is necessary before said liquor can be drawn from the cask for the purpose of vending to reduce the pressure by venting the cask or storage receptacle. Heretofore this venting process has been accomplished merely by allowing the excess gas to escape, retaining a small amount in order not to destroy the My invention contemplates saving this excess gas and storing it in a reservoir from which the gas under pressure is availed of to force liquor from still another cask to a faucet, or other destination. Heretofore by the methods commonly practiced of venting liquor containers, a considerable amount of the liquid itself has escaped and gone to waste with the gas, whereas by my system there is no appreciable waste.

Other advantages will be referred to later on and will be apparent from a reading of the following description.

In the drawings the figure given represents a diagrammatic view of my improved system, in one preferred form.

1, 2 and 3 conventionally represent casks or barrels. The cask 1 contains liquor, for example ale, under pressure. This cask, in the arrangement shown, is being vented. Cask 2 contains liquor which has been vented and is settling ready to be drawn from at a later time.

3 represents a cask of ale which has been vented and settled and is connected with any suitable draft apparatus, for example, a faucet (not shown) the connection being made in the usual manner, as by pipe 4. It

may be assumed for the purpose of this description that this system is located in a basement, whereas the faucets are located on an upper floor. The pipe 4 would therefore lead upwardly and it would require a pressure to force the liquor to such destination. To that end I provide a pressure supply pipe 5 entering cask 3. The pipe 5 is connected to tank 6, and a valve 7, of any suitable construction, is provided to reduce to the desired degree the pressure of gas passing into pipe 5. The pressure beyond valve 7 need only be such as to force the beer to its desired destination. The pressure in tank 6 is obtained by utilizing the gas released from cask 1 in the process of venting. To prevent the carrying over of the liquor, I provide what I term a separat ing tank or return tank 8 of any desired construction. Tank 8 is preferably suspended from a suitable trolley wire 9 so that it may be moved about conveniently to facilitate the desired adjustments and connections to be made with the various parts.v

10 is the vent tube which may be connected with cask 1 at one end, and with tank 8 at its other end. 11 is a valve therein. n

12 is a pipeconnected at one end to tank 8 and at its other end to the pressure tank 6.

1a is a valve for pipe line 12.

The tank 8 is preferably inclined in such a manner that its lowest point is adjacent to the connection of pipe 10. The connection of pipe 11 with tank 8 is preferably at the highest point. Suitable pressure gages, as 15, may be employed wherever desired, one of the same being shown on tank 6.

The operation is as follows: When the apparatus is connected, as shown in Fig. 1, the excess pressure from cask 1 flows through pipe 10 into tank 8, the valve 11 being opened to a sufficient extent to permit of the flow of the gas into tank 8 at a speed which will not carry over an excess of foam. While in the tank 8 any foam therein condenses and by' gravity will work back through pipe 10 into cask 1, while the gas in tank 8 will pass valve 14 and through pipe 12 into pressure tank 6. The gas in tank 6 will pass through pipe 5 into cask 3 at a pressure determined by the valve 7, thus furnishing in cask 3 the neces sary ressure to force the liquor contained therein through pipe 4 to the delivery faucets. Heretofore in the distribution of acid gas as the pressure giving element, since by the use of such a gas life is imparted to the liquor. Of course, while my invention contemplates the saving and using of the carbonic acid gas that has heretofore been discarded and wasted, it would not avoid the scope or spirit of my invention to augment the pressure to the cask 3 by the use of an air pump. In that event, any air introduced would remain in the highest point of the cask and would be separated from the liquor by a layer of carbonic acid gas first introduced, which latter would impart life to the liquor remaining in the cask. After the cask 3 has once been charged witha sufficient pressure by the foregoing system, the pipe 5 might be disconnected and the air pump applied. This, however, is merely supplemental to my in vention.

In Fig. 2 I have shown a pressure controlled valve for venting. This valve might be connected to the outgoing limb of valve 14, pipe 12 being disconnected. The function of this valve shown in Fig. 2 is to permit excess gas to escape until the desired pressure remains in cask 1. The speed of travel of the outgoing gas past this valve shown in Fig. 2 is such that no foam will be carried over and wasted.

It is to be understood that the reducing valve might be connected to the outgoing limb or valve 14, pipe 12 being disconnected. The function of the reducing valve is to permit excess gas to escape until the desired pressure remains in cask 1. The speed of travel of the outgoing gas past the reducing valve is such that no foam would be carried over and wasted. By properly adjusting the reducing valve, the will be permitted to escape slowly until the desired pressure remains in cask 1. By this means the gas only is permitted to escape, whereas any foam that may be carried up into tank 8 is per mitted to condense and return through pipe 10 to cask 1.. It is even possible after the pressure has been sufliciently reduced in cask 1 to apply the reducing valve directly to cask 1, and this might be done after the entire system has been disconnected and applied to other casks.

By the old method of venting, in which the excess gas and an appreciable proportion of the liquor is permitted to go to waste, the liquor in the cask is correspondingly weakened by the carrying off of a certain amount of the vitality of the liquor in. the cask. By

my invention this is avoided, since the liquor itself is condensed in the separator and re turned to the cask being vented, thereby saving in that liquor all, or substantially all, its original strength and vitality. If any of the vitality is abstracted by the outflow of gas, this will be restored in the cask to which the gas is being delivered. In this respect it will be seen that my invention results in another very substantial economy and gain, as compared with any system heretofore employed.

hat I claim is:

1. In an apparatus of the character described, a receptacle adapted to contain liquor and gas under pressure, a vent tube leading therefrom, a second receptacle adapted to contain liquor and gas under pressure, a distributing pipe leading therefrom, means for controlling the pressure of gas from the first to the second receptacle, and a liquid separator tank in communication with said vent tube arranged to prevent passage of vented liquid into said second receptacle.

2. In an apparatus of the character described, a receptacle adapted to containliquor and gas under pressure, a vent tube, a pressure storage tank in communication there with, a second receptacle, a pipe leading from the storage tank to the second receptacle, and a pressure controlling means between the said storage tank and said second receptacle, and means to prevent the passage of vented liquid into said second receptacle.

3. In an apparatus: of the character described, a receptacle adapted to contain liquor and gas under pressure, a vent tube, means to control the passage of gas through said vent tube, a liquid separator, said vent entering said separator at the lower side thereof, and a vent for said separator located at a higher level than the point of entry of said vent tube therein.

4:. In an apparatus of the character de scribed, a receptacle adapted to contain liquor and gas under pressure, a vent tube, means to control the passage of gas through said vent tube, and a separator tank having an inclined lower side, said vent tube being connected to the lower end thereof, said connection being so arranged that the separated liquid may return-only to the vented receptacle.

5. In an apparatus of the character de scribed, a receptacle adapted to contain liquor and gas under pressure, a second receptacle containing liquor and gas under a lesser pressure, a conduit leading from the top of the first receptacle to the second receptacle, and a liquid separator in said conduit, the connections of said separator With said conduit being so arranged that the separated liquid cannot pass beyond said separator.

6. In an apparatus of the character de scribed, a receptacle adapted to contain liquor and gas under pressure, a second reof said separator With said conduit being so ce tacle containing liquor and gas under arranged that the separated liquid cannot a esser pressure, a conduit leading from the pass beyond said separator. top of the first receptacle to the second re- MARGO ONEILL,

5 ceptacle, a separator in said conduit, and a pressure controlling device in said conduit for both. of said receptacles, the connections Witnesses:

LANGDON MOORE, Class, A. PEARD. 

